Authentication based on object recognition

ABSTRACT

Various systems, mediums, and methods herein describe aspects of an authentication system. The system may receive a request from a user device to authenticate a user. The system may determine a route travelled by the user. The route can be determined based at least on data retrieved from the user device of the user. The system may determine one or more objects viewable along the route. At least one image of the one or more objects can be selected. The system may communicate the at least one image and at least one other image to the user device to be displayed on the user device. The system may receive a selection of the at least one image by the user through a display of the user device. The authentication of the user can be based, at least in part, on the user selection of the at least one image.

CROSS REFERENCED TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/081,774, filed on Mar. 25, 2016, (now issued as U.S. Pat. No.10,025,919 on Jul. 17, 2018), the contents of which are incorporated byreference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This disclosure generally describes various mechanisms to authenticate auser with a user device.

BACKGROUND

An authentication process is usually invoked when a user attempts toaccess a device that requires a one or more forms of useridentification. For example, a username and a password may be a form ofidentification required to authenticate the user. Various systems mayhave different requirements for implementing usernames and passwords.Some authentication systems require the user to change the username orpassword after a certain period of time. This may require the user toremember different usernames and passwords, possibly including variouschanges to their usernames and passwords. Thus, such systems may requireusers to memorize their usernames and passwords, thereby making itdifficult or cumbersome for the users to successfully authenticate anaccount. One reason for requiring periodic changes of authenticationinformation is to protect the security of online or Internet-basedtransactions from Internet hackers and reduce the likelihood offraudulent Internet activity.

As such, there is much need for technological advancements to supportauthentication systems that rely on user information and in someinstances, without having to keep track of changes to usernames andpasswords.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary authentication system,according to an embodiment;

FIG. 2A is a diagram of an exemplary authentication system including theroutes and objects, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 2B is a diagram of an exemplary authentication system including theroutes and objects, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 2C is a diagram of an exemplary authentication system including theroutes and objects, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 3A illustrates a display screen of an example user device,according to an embodiment;

FIG. 3B illustrates an exemplary route with vehicles stopped at thetraffic light, according to an embodiment;

FIGS. 4A and 4B illustrate exemplary billboard objects, according to anembodiment;

FIG. 5 illustrates a display screen of an example user device for userauthentication, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 6 illustrates exemplary user devices, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 7 illustrates exemplary user devices, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 8A illustrates an exemplary system configured to support a set oftrays, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 8B illustrates an exemplary tray configured to support one or moreserver components, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 9 illustrates an exemplary method, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 10 illustrates an exemplary method, according to an embodiment; and

FIG. 11 is a block diagram of an exemplary authentication system,according to an embodiment.

Embodiments of the present disclosure and their advantages may beunderstood by referring to the detailed description provided herein. Itshould be appreciated that reference numerals may be used to illustratevarious elements and/or features provided in the figures. Further, thefigures may illustrate various examples for purposes of illustration andexplanation related to the embodiments of the present disclosure and notfor purposes of any limitation.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In some embodiments, a user of a device may be identified by anauthentication system based on objects viewed by the user. As anexample, consider a scenario where the user may take a given route towork, where the route includes a number of streets. In another example,the user may walk or bike to work, where the route may be a walkway or abike path. In various such circumstances, the authentication system candetermine the user's route to work and also the objects viewed orpotentially viewed by the user as the user travels along the route. Theobjects may include one or more structures, signs, billboards,electronic displays, and landmarks, among other possible objects alongthe route.

The authentication system can also determine images of the objectsaccording to the user's view as the user travels along the route. Forexample, the system may determine that the user is travelling by alandmark, such as a baseball stadium such that the baseball stadium isviewable by the user. In some embodiments, the system can identify animage of the baseball stadium that can be used to authenticate the user.In particular, the system can search and select a particular image ofthe baseball stadium that corresponds to the user's view of the baseballstadium from the route. Since the user may remember that particular viewof the baseball stadium on the way to work, the image of that view maybe used to authenticate the user. In some embodiments, another user maytake a different route to work without viewing or seeing the baseballstadium.

For example, the system may receive a login request from the user toauthenticate the user's account, possibly where the user is attemptingto access an account with a user device, such as a laptop computer atthe workplace or a smartphone carried by the user. In such instances,the system may use the image of the baseball stadium to authenticate theuser. In particular, the system may send the image along with a numberof other images to the laptop computer, prompting the user to login byselecting an image that is recognized. Since the image of the baseballstadium captures the user's view of the stadium on the way to work, theimage may be familiar or recognized by the user. Further, the image maybe particularly familiar to the user based on the route travelled to getto work. As such, the user may be more likely to select the image of thebaseball stadium as opposed to the other images without the user havingto actively designate or select the baseball stadium view beforehand asan authenticating image for the user's account.

In some embodiments, in response to the request to authenticate, thesystem may communicate with the user device. In some instances, thesystem may send one image of the viewable objects to the user device,such as the image of the baseball stadium described above. Further, thesystem may send one other image to the user device that depicts alandmark unfamiliar (e.g., unrecognizable) to the user. The system mayalso cause the user device to display the image of the viewable objects,such as the baseball stadium, and the other image of the landmarkunfamiliar (e.g., unrecognizable) to the user.

In some embodiments, the system may prompt the user to select one ormore images as a second factor authentication. In particular, where theuser forgets a password to an account, the system may utilize the imageof the ball park as a mechanism to allow the user to recover theforgotten password. Yet, the system may also periodically request theuser to select an image of an object along the route to determinewhether using images would be an effective form of authenticating thegiven user. As such, the system may develop a customized authenticationmechanism based on the user, particularly with the user's ability orcognitive learning style to recognize or recollect objects viewed alonga given route.

In further examples, a number of billboards or signs may be provided ona given route. For example, the system may identify an image a singlebillboard that is posted along the user's route to work. Further, thesystem may identify an image for each of multiple billboards along theuser's route such that a series of images may be used to authenticatethe user. For example, each of the multiple billboards may include amessage. As such, the system may generate a series of such messages toauthenticate the user. For example, the first billboard may be anadvertisement for music and the second billboard may be an advertisementfor a smart watch. As such, the user may be prompted to select messagesor words such as “music” and/or “smart watch” to authenticate the user.Yet, in some instances, the user may select a combination of the words,“music” and/or “smart watch,” possibly based on the series of messagesviewed along the route.

In some embodiments, the image and/or message displayed on a billboardcan depend on the billboard's location, where the image and/or themessages change over time. In particular, considering the scenariosabove, the authentication may be based on the images and/or messagesviewed by the user on the billboards along the specific route taken bythe user and also during a specific period of time the user goes towork. Thus, people who travelled on the specific route in approximatelythe same time frame may view the same objects viewed by the user.Therefore, the user authentication based on objects viewed along theroute to work specifically corresponds to the user's knowledge andminimizes the chances of random outsiders being able to select thecorrect images when prompted during a login. It should be noted thatimages and/or messages viewed by other users for purposes ofauthentication may be different and may depend on respective routestaken by such users, possibly also depending on the time of the day.

In some embodiment, the route may have substantially slow traffic suchthat the user may slow down on congested spots when driving to work, ormay stop at a number of traffic lights, stop signs, road constructions,accidents, or stop lights. In an example, a congested route or acongested section of a route includes a plurality of vehicles (e.g., 3,5, 10 or 20 vehicles) moving at a slow speed (e.g., less than 5, 10, or20 miles per hour) and following each other. Thus, the system maydetermine that the user has an opportunity to view billboards orlandmarks on congested routes and/or based on the user being proximateto the traffic lights, signs, or other locations where the user may bestopped. For example, the user may be stopped at a particularintersection with traffic lights, thereby giving the user an opportunityto read a billboard message. As such, the system may determine images ofthe billboard message. Thus, during a login, the user may be promptedwith a number of images, including the billboard message at theparticular intersection with the traffic lights. It is noted thatstopping locations with traffic lights may include various locationswhere the user may be stopped and/or provided with the opportunity toview a specific object or image. For a corresponding login, the user mayselect the image that may correspond to the billboard message viewablefrom the stopping location. Further, the system may determine adifferent view of the billboard based on the user going to work asopposed to the user driving back from work. As such, different views ofthe billboard may be used to authenticate the user as well.

In some embodiments, the user may take a first route and drive a car towork, take a second route (bike path) and ride a bike to work, or take athird route (walkway) and walk to work, among other possibilities. Assuch, the user may view different objects when taking multiple differentroutes. As an example, the user may take different routes on differentdays of the week, possibly depending on traffic. As another example, asingle route to a target location may include a number of segments. Theroute to work may include driving to a train station, taking the trainto the destination station, and then walking or biking to work. In afurther example, the route to work may include walking to a bus stop,taking a bus to a destination stop, and then walking to work.Additionally, the user may view billboards during the bus/train ride andparticularly at train stations and/or bus stops. Therefore, the userviews of various billboards can be based on multiple differentscenarios.

In various circumstances, the example embodiments described herein mayresolve various challenges with authenticating a user of a user devicewith access to communication networks and data infrastructures. As such,the example embodiments described herein may resolve problems that didnot exist before the availability of the computer networks and/or theInternet, particularly accessing computer networks and/or the Internetto authenticate users. In particular, such embodiments may addressproblems specific to authenticating a user of a user device coupled tocomputer networks and/or the Internet, thereby improving Internetsecurity. Various such embodiments may provide solutions that aretechnical in nature and/or rooted in authenticating users over computernetworks and/or the Internet. Further, such embodiments may provideunconventional steps confined to one or more particular usefulapplications related to a given user being authenticated with a userdevice to get access to a computer network and/or the Internet.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary system 100, according to anembodiment. The system 100, possibly referred to as the authenticationsystem 100, may be configured to transfer data over one or morecommunication networks 108. In particular, the system 100 may includethe server 102, possibly referred to as the server system 102. Theserver 102 may be configured to perform operations of a serviceprovider, such as PayPal, Inc. of San Jose, Calif., USA. Further, thesystem 100 may also include user device 104 and/or the user device 106operated by their respective users. In practice, the server 102 and theuser devices 104 and/or 106 may be configured to communicate over theone or more communication networks 108.

In an embodiment, the authentication system 100 may include the server102. The server 102 can include the non-transitory memory 114. Theserver 102 of the authentication system 100 can have one or morehardware processors 112 coupled to the non-transitory memory 114 andconfigured to read the instructions from the non-transitory memory 114to cause the authentication system 100 to perform the operations.

The system 100 may operate with more or less than the computing devicesshown in FIG. 1, where each device may be configured to communicate overone or more communication networks 108, possibly to transfer dataaccordingly. The one or more communication networks 108 may also includea packet-switched network configured to provide digital networkingcommunications, possibly to exchange data of various forms, content,type, and/or structure. The one or more communication networks 108 mayinclude a data network such as a private network, a local area network,and/or a wide area network. In some instances, the one or morecommunication networks 108 may include a communications network such asa telecommunications network and/or a cellular network with one or morebase stations, among other possible networks.

The data/data packets 122 and/or 124 may be transferrable usingcommunication protocols such as packet layer protocols, packet ensembleprotocols, and/or network layer protocols. For example, the data/datapackets 122 and/or 124 may be transferrable using transmission controlprotocols and/or internet protocols (TCP/IP). In various embodiments,each of the data/data packets 122 and 124 may be assembled ordisassembled into larger or smaller packets of varying sizes. As such,data/data packets 122 and/or 124 may be transferrable over the one ormore networks 108 and to various locations in the authentication system100.

In some embodiments, the server 102 may take a variety of forms. Theserver 102 may be an enterprise server, possibly configured with one ormore operating systems to facilitate the scalability of the system 100.For example, the server 102 may configured with a Unix-based operatingsystem to integrate with a growing number of other servers, user devices104 and/or 106, and one or more networks 108 over the system 100.

In some embodiments, the server 102 may include multiple components,such as a hardware processor 112, a non-transitory memory 114, anon-transitory data storage 116, and/or a communication interfacecomponent 118, among other possible components, any of which may becommunicatively linked via a system bus, network, or other connectionmechanism 120. The hardware processor 112 may take the form of amulti-purpose processor, a microprocessor, a special purpose processor,a digital signal processor (DSP) and/or other types of processingcomponents. For example, the processor 112 may include an applicationspecific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable system-on-chip (SOC),and/or a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) to process, read, and/orwrite data for authentication process of numerous users. In particular,the processor 112 may include a variable-bit (e.g., 64-bit) processorarchitecture specifically configured to facilitate the scalability ofthe increasing number of authentications. As such, the one or moreprocessors 112 may execute varying instructions sets (e.g., simplifiedand complex instructions sets) with fewer cycles per instruction thanother conventional general-purpose processors to improve the performanceof the server 102 for purposes of mass scalability and/or accommodationof growth.

The non-transitory memory component 114 and/or the data storage 116 mayinclude one or more volatile, non-volatile, and/or replaceable datastorage components, such as a magnetic, optical, and/or flash storagethat may be integrated in whole or in part with the hardware processor112. Further, the memory component 114 may include a number ofinstructions and/or instruction sets. The processing component 112 maybe coupled to the memory component 114 and configured to read theinstructions to cause the server 102 to perform operations, such asthose described in this disclosure, illustrated by the accompanyingfigures, and/or otherwise contemplated herein. Notably, the data storage116 or memory 114 may be configured to store numerous user data,possibly including data that may be accessed often by the user devices104 and/or 106. For example, the user data may include user ID and dataof the routes taken by a user and the objects along the routes.

The communication interface component 118 may take a variety of formsand may be configured to allow the server 102 to communicate with one ormore devices, such as the user devices 104 and/or 106. For example, thecommunication interface component 118 may include a transceiver 119 thatenables the server 102 to communicate with the user devices 104 and/or106 via the one or more communication networks 108. Further, thecommunication interface component 118 may include a wired interface,such as an Ethernet interface, to communicate with the user devices 104and/or 106. Yet further, the communication interface component 118 mayinclude a wireless interface, such as a cellular interface, a GlobalSystem for Mobile Communications (GSM) interface, a Code DivisionMultiple Access (CDMA) interface, and/or a Time Division Multiple Access(TDMA) interface, among other possibilities. In addition, thecommunication interface 118 may include a wireless local area networkinterface such as a WI-FI interface configured to communicate with anumber of different protocols. As such, the communication interface 118may include a wireless interface configured to transfer data over shortdistances utilizing short-wavelength radio waves in approximately the2.4 to 2.485 GHz range. In some instances, the communication interface118 may send/receive data or data packets 122 and/or 124 to/from userdevices 104 and/or 106.

The user devices 104 and 106 may also be configured to perform a varietyof operations such as those described in this disclosure, illustrated bythe accompanying figures, and/or otherwise contemplated herein. Notably,the data storage 136/146 of the user devices 104 and 106 may beconfigured to store numerous user data, possibly including data that maybe accessed often by the user devices 104 and 106 such as geographicdata, movement data, location data, among other types of data associatedwith routes taken by the user and the objects along the routes. Forexample, the user devices 104 and 106 may be configured to authenticatea user of the user devices 104 and 106 based on data stored in the userdevices. Alternatively, the user devices 104 and 106 may be configuredto authenticate respective users of the user devices 104 and 106 basedon data retrieved from the server 102.

In some embodiments, the user devices 104 and 106 may include or takethe form of a user device system, a personal computer (PC) such as alaptop device, a tablet computer device, a wearable computer device, ahead-mountable display (HMD) device, a smart watch device, and/or othertypes of computing devices configured to transfer data. The user devices104 and 106 may include various components, including, for example,input/output (I/O) interfaces 130 and 140, one or more cameras 135/145,communication interfaces 132 and 142 that may include transceivers 133and 143, hardware processors 134 and 144, and non-transitory datastorages 136 and 146, respectively, all of which may be communicativelylinked with each other via a system bus, network, or other connectionmechanisms 138 and 148, respectively.

The I/O interfaces 130 and 140 may be configured to receive inputs fromand provide outputs to respective users of the user devices 104 and 106.For example, the I/O interface 130 may include a display that provides agraphical user interface (GUI) configured to receive an input from auser, for example to authenticate the user. Thus, the I/O interfaces 130and 140 may include displays configured to receive inputs and/or otherinput hardware with tangible surfaces, such as touchscreens with touchsensitive sensors and/or proximity sensors. The I/O interfaces 130 and140 may also include a microphone configured to receive voice commands,a computer mouse, a keyboard, and/or other hardware to facilitate inputmechanisms, possibly to authenticate a user. In addition, I/O interfaces130 and 140 may include output hardware such as one or more soundspeakers, other audio output mechanisms, haptic feedback systems, and/orother hardware components.

In some embodiments, communication interfaces 132 and 142 may include ortake a variety of forms. For example, communication interfaces 132 and142 may be configured to allow user devices 104 and 106, respectively,to communicate with one or more devices according to a number ofprotocols described and/or contemplated herein. For instance,communication interfaces 132 and 142 may be configured to allow userdevices 104 and 106, respectively, to communicate with the server 102via the one or more communication networks 108. The hardware processors134 and 144 may include one or more multi-purpose processors,microprocessors, special purpose processors, digital signal processors(DSP), application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), programmablesystem-on-chips (SOC), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), and/orother types of processing components.

The non-transitory data storages 136 and 146 may include one or morevolatile or non-volatile data storages, removable or non-removable datastorages, and/or a combination of such data storages that may beintegrated in whole or in part with the hardware processors 134 and 144,respectively. Further, data storages 136 and 146 may includenon-transitory memories that store instructions and/or instructionssets. Yet further, the processors 134 and 144 may be coupled to the datastorages 136 and 146, respectively, and configured to read theinstructions from the non-transitory memories to cause the user devices104 and 106 to perform operations, respectively, such as those describedin this disclosure, illustrated by the accompanying figures, and/orotherwise contemplated herein.

FIG. 2A is an exemplary authentication system including the routes andobjects, according to an embodiment. As shown, the user device 204 maytake the form of a mobile device and/or smart phone such as the userdevice 104 described above in relation to FIG. 1. In some embodiments,the user device 204 may take the form of the user devices 104 or 106described above with respect to FIG. 1. For example, the user device 204may take the form of user device 104. As such, the user device 204 maydisplay the data 208 and the map 202 on an I/O interface that takes theform of the I/O interface 130 of user device 104. In another example,the I/O interface (e.g., a graphical user interface) of the user device204 may display one or more images of the objects, such as the image ofthe baseball stadium 212.

The authentication system 200 shows an example map 202. Among otherthings, the map 202 includes the object 212 (e.g., a baseball stadium),the object 214 (e.g., a work place), and the route 210. Theauthentication system 200 also shows a vehicle 206 of the user, wherethe user has a user device 204. In an example, the user may travel onthe route 210 in the vehicle 206 to go to work 214. As shown, the userdevice 204 may be at a location 216 along the route 210 where the usermay view the baseball stadium 212. In an example, data 208 can bedisplayed on the display screen of the user device 204. The displayeddata can be the map 202, possibly including one or more images. As oneexample, a portion or the whole map 202 including the route 210 can bedisplayed on the display screen of the user device 204.

In some embodiments, the route 210 associated with the user can bedetermined by the authentication system 200. The route 210 can bedetermined based on the data 208 retrieved from the user device 204. Inan example, the route 210 can be determined via a mapping module (e.g.,a hardware and/or software module) associated with the user device 204.The mapping module may determine the route 120 based on the user drivingthe vehicle 206 along the route 210. In another example, the mappingmodule of the user device 204 can use global positioning system (GPS)signals to determine the location 216 of the vehicle 206 along the route210. In some instances, the data 208 may include location data or GPSdata, possibly stored in a memory (data storage) of the user device 204that may take the form of the components 136 and 146 of the user devices104 and 106, respectively, as described above. Additionally, thelocation data may be retrieved, consolidated into data packets, and sentby the user device 204 through a wireless network, e.g., network 108 ofFIG. 1, to the server 102 of the authentication system 100 to be storedin the data storage 116 or memory 114 of the server 102.

In some embodiments, one or more objects 212, shown in authenticationsystem 200, associated with the route 210 can be determined or detected.As an example, the object 212 can be a landmark such as the baseballstadium viewable by the user of the vehicle 206, potentially operatingthe vehicle 206 or possibly as a passenger of the vehicle 206.Additionally, an image of the baseball stadium 212 can be determined. Inan example, the image of the baseball stadium 212 can be determinedaccording to the user view of the baseball stadium 212. For instance,the image may be determined from the angle, azimuth, and/or altitude atwhich the user is viewing the baseball stadium 212 at the location 216of the route 210. Further, the image may be determined based on themovement, acceleration, velocity, and/or angular velocity of the vehicle206.

In an example, the image may be determined (e.g., selected) by theserver 102 of the authentication system 100/200 to authenticate theuser. In particular, the server 102 may determine the location 216 ofthe user device and retrieve images of the baseball stadium 212. Theimage may be retrieved from the network 108 and transferred to the userdevice 204 to authenticating the user based on the user selecting theimage from one or more other images provided. Further, the image can bedetermined by the user device 204 such that the user device 204 maydetermine the location 216 of the user device 204 and retrieve the imageof the baseball stadium 212. It should also be noted that the server 102may determine the image of the baseball stadium 212 from imagesavailable over the Internet that may or may not correspond with theuser's view from the route 210.

FIG. 2B is an exemplary authentication system including the routes andobjects, according to an embodiment. The authentication system 220 maytake the form of authentication system 200. The authentication system220 shows the example map 202. Among other things, the map 202 includesthe object 232 (e.g., a tree), the object 214 (e.g., the user's workplace), and the route 230. FIG. 2B also shows a bicycle 226 of the user,possibly where the user carries the user device 204. In an example, theuser may travel along the route 230 riding the bicycle 226 to go to work214. As shown, the user device 204 is at a location 236 on the route 230where the user may view the tree 232. In an example, the route 230associated with the user can be determined by the authentication system220. The route 230 can be determined based on the data 208 retrievedfrom the user device 204 associated with the user. The data may includeGPS data that corresponds to the user travelling along the route 230.

Additionally, an image of the object 232, e.g., an image of the tree canbe determined to authenticate the user. In an example, the image of theobject 232 can be determined according to the user view of the tree 232,possibly from the route 230 as the user is riding the bicycle 226. Forinstance, the image may be determined from the angle, azimuth, and/orthe altitude of the user viewing the tree 232 at location 236 along theroute 230. Further, the image may be determined based on the movement,acceleration, velocity, and/or the angular velocity of the bicycle 226.Yet, as noted, the image of the object 232 may be determined from one ormore networks, such as the one or more networks 108. In particular, theserver 102 may search and identify one or more images of the object 232from various networks 108 accessible by the server 102. As such, theimage may be provided to the user such that the image may be selected toauthenticate the user.

FIG. 2C is an exemplary authentication system including the routes andobjects, according to an embodiment. The authentication system 240 maytake the form of authentication system 220. The authentication system240 shows the example map 202. Among other things, the map 202 includesthe object or structure 252 (e.g., town hall), the object or structure214 (e.g., the work place), and the route 250, possibly a side walk or awalking path. The authentication system 240 also shows the user 246 withthe user device 204. In an example, the user 246 may walk along theroute 250 to go to work 214. As shown, the user device 204 is at alocation 256 on the route 250, where the user may view the town hall252. In an example, the route 250 associated with the user 246 can bedetermined by the authentication system 240. The route 250 can bedetermined based on data 208 retrieved from the user device 204associated with the user. The data 208 may indicate that the userwalking along the route 250.

Additionally, the system 240 may determine one or more objects 252associated with the route 250. The system may also determine an image ofthe town hall 252. In an example, the image of the town hall 252 can bedetermined according to the user view of the town hall 252 based on theuser walking on the route 250. For instance, the image may be determinedfrom the angle, azimuth, and/or altitude of the user 246 viewing thetown hall 252 at location 256 along the route 250. Yet, as noted, theimage of the object 252 may be determined from one or more networks,such as the one or more networks 108. In particular, the server 102 maysearch and identify one or more images of the object 252 from variousnetworks 108 accessible by the server 102, such as the Internet. Asdiscussed, the routes 210, 230, and 250 can include any one of a street,a bike path, and/or a walkway, among other possible avenues of travel.Additionally, the image determined can correspond to the user view fromany one of the street, the bike path, and/or the walkway, among theother possibilities.

In some embodiments, one or more objects 212, 232, and 252 associatedwith the routes 210, 230, and/or 250, respectively, can include abillboard, a number of posters, an electronic display, and/or acombination of light emitting diodes (LEDs), among various other visibleobjects. As such, the system 240 may determine an image of such objectsfrom a respective route 210, 230, and/or 250. In some instances, thesystem 240 may determine the images based on time, such as every hour,every day, or every week. Additionally, the system 240 may determine amessage or a string of messages from various objects, such asbillboards. Thus, the user's view of the billboard images at a giventime or messages conveyed can be used to authenticate the user.

For example, the user may view an image of a penguin on a billboardlocated along the route 210 in FIG. 2A. For authentication, the user maybe provided with the same or a similar penguin image on a display screenof user device 204, possibly that takes the form of the I/O interface130. The user may be provided with the penguin image along with otherrandom images and the user may be asked to select an image viewed alongthe route. Note that the “random” images are selected to ensure theimages are not what the user may see along a traveled route, and in oneembodiment, are also images that are determined to be unfamiliar (e.g.,unrecognizable) to the user. As such, the other images are notnecessarily random. As such, the user may be authenticated based onselecting the penguin image from the other random images. In someembodiments, the user route 210 may be determined via the data 208retrieved from a user device 204 but the authentication can be performedon other user devices (e.g., the user device 106) of the user.

FIG. 3A illustrates a display screen of an example user device 300. Asshown in FIG. 3A, the display screen 310 can display the map 320 thatincludes a number of routes and objects. As provided, the map 320 maytake the form of the map 202 described above. Additionally, the scrollbar 340 may be used to view other portions of the map 320 and additionalmaps on the display screen 310. As an example, the mobile device 300 maytake the form of the user device 104 described above in relation to theauthentication systems 100, 200, 220, and/or 240.

In some embodiments, objects 212, 214, 252, and/or 345 rendered on thedisplay screen 310 may be used to authenticate the user. For example,the user may recognize screen views of the display screen 310 toauthenticate the user. As such, in some instances, the screen view ofthe display screen 310 may be saved and/or stored by the user device300. Thus, during a user login, the user device 300 may request the userto select the screen view of the display screen 310 from various otherscreen views. By selecting the screen view of the display screen 310,the user may be authenticated. As shown, the map 320 include a congestedroute 210 and a traffic light (e.g., a stop light) 345. The system 300may determine the screen view of the display screen 310 based on theobjects 212, 214, 252, and/or 345 viewed by the user. Further, thesystem 300 may determine the screen view based on the user being stoppedat the traffic light 345. As such, various such screen views of thedisplay screen 310 may be used to authenticate the user as describedbelow.

In some instances, the images viewed by the user can include the imagesof the objects viewed based on the user's vehicle slowing down on thecongested route 210. For example, the user's vehicle may slow down onthe congested route 210, or may stop at the traffic lights 345 on theway to work 214. Thus, the user may get a better chance of viewing thetown hall 252 at the traffic light 345, or get a better chance ofviewing the baseball stadium 212 in the congested route 210.

FIG. 3B illustrates an exemplary route with vehicles stopped at thetraffic light, according to an embodiment. For example, diagram 350shows the vehicle 206 of the user at the traffic light 345 of the route210, where the user has the user device 204. As shown, the traffic light345 can be one of the objects viewed by the user and thus, an imageviewed by the user can be associated with the user's view of the trafficlight 345. As such, the image of the traffic light 345 may be used toauthenticate the user in various such ways described above.

In some embodiments, the authentication systems 200, 220, and 240 maygenerate images for authenticating the user. In some instances, theimages may be generated for a user and shown to the user along the route210. In some instances, images can be flashed to the user from trafficlight 345 when the user is at the traffic light 345. In particular, theimages may be flashed to the user, possibly when the user is likely toview the traffic light 345, such as when the light turns green. Forexample, the system may flash the image of the penguin described abovethrough the green light of the traffic light 345.

In some embodiment, the user may get a better opportunity or a chance ofviewing billboards at the traffic light 345 or in transit with thecongested routes 210. For example, the user may get a better chance ofreading billboard messages at the traffic light 345 or in transit withthe congested routes 210. As such, during a login, one or more imagesmay be presented to the user, thereby prompting the user to select animage that corresponds to the user view of the objects while the user isat the traffic light 345. For example, the user view of a landmark 212(e.g., baseball stadium) may be identified based on the user being atthe traffic light 345 proximate to the landmark 212 (e.g., baseballstadium). Further, the system may determine multiple views from when theuser takes the route 210 to work 214 in comparison to when the userdrives back from work 214 to another location, such as the user's home.

FIGS. 4A and 4B illustrate exemplary billboard objects, according to anembodiment. In some embodiments, images of billboard objects may be usedto authenticate a user. As an example, the user may be travelling alonga route driving a vehicle, riding on a bike, or walking, as describedabove. The user may view one or more of the billboards 402 and/or 404along the route. In an example, the billboards can display staticimages, flashing images, and/or can flashing messages, among variouscombinations of such images and messages. For example, the billboard 402may convey a message associated with “music,” “musical acts,” “best newmusical acts,” and/or the “top 10 best new musical acts.” The billboard404 may provide a message associated with “music” and/or “smartwatches.”

In some embodiments, the authentication system 100, 200, 220, or 240 candetermine a first image and a second image of one or more objects. Forexample, the system may determine a first image of the billboard 402 andalso a second image of the billboard 404, possibly that correspond tothe user's view from a route. The first image may include a firstmessage from the billboard 402, such as “music” or “musical acts.”Further, the second image may include a second message from thebillboard 404, such as “music” and/or “smart watches.” Theauthentication system can determine a series or a combination of thefirst message and the second message. As such, the user may beauthenticated in a login by selecting words, such as “music,” “musicalacts,” and/or “smart watches,” among various other words provided to theuser. In some instances, the system may provide the word “music” and theuser may select “musical acts” and/or “smart watches” to beauthenticated.

Yet further, in some other embodiments, the first image and the secondimage, discussed above, can be the images of a single billboard, suchthat the single billboard can flash a series of images and the firstimage and the second image can be the user's view of the singlebillboard when the user has slowed down or stopped at the billboard. Asdescribed, the user may be authenticated based on the first image, thesecond image or a combination of the first image and the second image.In particular, a series of images may be selected and shown to the user,along with “random” images, where the user may be asked (e.g., prompted)to identify a plurality of images, either in any order or sequentiallyin an order the user may have seen the images on a selected route. In anexample, no “random” images may be shown along with the series ofimages. By authenticating with a plurality of images, the likelihood offalse authentications is reduced, especially if the images are alongdifferent streets, roads, or freeways requiring a plurality of turns orchanges of direction by the user. In another embodiment, the system mayselect images that the user is more likely to view and/or remember, suchas based on known user interests, recent purchases, recent searches(e.g., if the user has been searching for watches and a billboard has animage of a watch, the watch image may be selected over other imagesalong the route), upcoming events the user may attend, etc.).

In another example, the billboards may flash images that are customizedfor the user when the user has slowed down or stopped at the billboards.In an example, a tracking module (e.g., GPS module) of the user device300 can monitor user movements and can detect where the user stopped orslowed down on a congested route 210 or at a traffic light 345. Thetracking module can further detect or associate the objects 212, 214,232, 252, and/or 345 along the user's route 210 with the locations wherethe user slowed down or stopped.

FIG. 5 illustrates a display screen of an example user device 500requesting user authentication. As an example, the mobile device 500 maytake the form of the user device 104 described above and may be includedin the authentication systems 100, 200, 220, or 240. The display screen504 of the user device 500 can show a login request 506 asking the userto select one of the images on the display screen. For example, themessage can ask the user to select one of the images 512, 514, 516, 518,520, or 522 as the image viewed by the user today. As an example, theuser may select on the display screen 504, one of the images 512 or 514that are the images of or displayed on the billboard 402 or 404 viewedby the user. As such, the user device 500 may identify the user and maygrant the user's login or authentication request 506. For example, basedon the user authentication, the user device 500 may grant the user toaccess a user's account. Additionally, the scroll bar 524 may be used toview more images on the display screen 504.

In some embodiments, the request for user authentication can comprise asecond factor authentication of the user that can be based at least onthe user selection of the image on the display screen 504 of the userdevice 500. In some other embodiments, the request for userauthentication can comprise a password recovery request such that theone or more user selections on the display screen 504 of the user device500 can authenticate the password recovery request.

In some embodiments, the login request 506 can originate from the userand can be determined (e.g., received) by the user device 500. Theauthentication can be at least in part based on image(s) of the objectsviewed on the route taken by the user. For example, the authenticationcan be based on route 210 travelled by the user driving the vehicle 206.The authentication can be based on the route 230 travelled by the userriding the bike 226, or the route 250 walked by the user. Additionally,authentication can be based on the object, billboards or landmarks,viewed by the user along the routes 210, 230, or 250.

In some embodiments, the login request 506 on the user screen of theuser device 500 can ask the user to select an image viewed en-route towork today. The user can be identified based on the user's selection. Asdescribed above, the authentication system can determine the routeassociated with the user and also can determine the objects associatedwith the route travelled by the user. Thus, if the user selects thecorrect image of the object viewed today, then the user device 500 canverify the user. As an example, the identification based on a selectionof a viewed image, can be part of an authentication process that mayinclude other steps.

As an example, the login request 506 on the user screen of the userdevice 500 can ask the user to identify the message conveyed on thebillboards 402 and 404 viewed en-route to work today, such as thebillboards described above. In particular, each billboard 402 and 404may convey a different message such that the viewed billboards convey asequence of messages and the login request 506 may ask the user aquestion corresponding to the sequence of messages. As described above,a given sequence may include the words “music” and “wearable devices”associated with the billboards 402 and 404. As such, the words “music”and “wearable devices” may be selected by the user to authenticate theuser's account.

In some embodiments, the authentication system can determine whether auser views an object. For example, the system may receive an indicationfrom the user device 104 that the user views the object. In particular,the indication may be generated based on the display screen 504 thatdetects the user viewing at least one of the objects from the route. Forexample, the user device 500 may determine or detect informationassociated with the user's eyes. Further, the information may bedetermined as the user travels along the routes 210, 230, or 250 via arecognition module of the user device 500. The recognition module may beassociated with cameras of the user device 500, such as the cameras135/145 (e.g., a back-facing camera) of the user devices 104 and 106,respectively, that can detect a viewing direction of the user. Forexample, the user device 104 can detect the objects viewed by the user.In an example, the object can be the user device 104 of the user and theimage can be a user view of the user device 104, e.g., the user view ofthe user device's display screen, e.g., a screen shot or screen captureof the display screen.

In some embodiments, the indication that the user views the one or moreobjects (e.g., the baseball stadium 212) from the route (e.g., the route210) is determined based at least on a back-facing camera of the userdevice that can take the form of the cameras 135/145 of the user devices104 and 106 and can captures user views of the one or more objects.

In some embodiments, the authentication system, e.g., the authenticationsystem 100, 200, 220, or 240 can receive a request for authenticationthrough a user device, e.g., the user device 104, 106, 204, 300, or 500of the user. The request can come from the display screen, e.g., displayscreen 504 of the user device 500. In some embodiments, in response tothe authentication request, the authentication system, e.g., theauthentication system 100, 200, 220, or 240 may communicate and send atleast one image of the viewable objects along the route and at least oneother image to the user device, e.g., the user device 104, 106, 204,300, or 500 of the user. The authentication system may also cause theuser device to display the image of the viewable objects and the otherimage on the display screen e.g., display screen 504 of the user device500 such that a user of the user device 500 can select one or more ofthe images.

In some embodiments, the authentication request can be received by thegraphical display screen 504 of the user device 500. In some instances,in response to receiving the touch input request, the user data isstored in the data storage of user device 500 that takes the form of thedata storage 136 of the user device 100. The corresponding images can bedisplayed by the graphical display screen 504. In some embodiments, theimages can be retrieved from the server 102 of the authentication system100.

In some embodiments, the user device 500 may also include anon-transitory machine-readable medium that takes the form ofnon-transitory data storage 136. In some instances, the non-transitorymachine-readable medium may have stored the machine-readable executableinstructions. The machine-readable executable instructions can cause amachine, such as the user device 500 to perform operations. In someinstances, the operations include determining user data associated witha user, such as the data 208 described above. For example, the userdevice 500 may identify the user data including the routes, objects, andimages of the objects associated with the user stored in the datastorage 136 of the user device 500.

In some embodiments, each one of the user devices 104, 106, 204, and/orthe server 102 of the authentication systems 100, 200, 220, and/or 240may include an identification module that may execute on a processor134/144 of the associated user device 104, 106, or 204 or the processor112 of the server 102. The identification modules can identify the userbased on user's selection on the display screen of the user device 104,106, or 204.

Additionally, the authentication system 100 may create one or more useraccounts for a user. Each user account with the authentication system100 can include the information associated with the one or more routestravelled by a user and the information including images correspondingto the objects viewed by the user along the routes. In an example, theaccounts can exclusively be used by the authentication system 100 andthe user may not be aware of the accounts.

In some embodiments, an account, possibly referred to a user account,may take a number of different forms. For example, an account mayinclude a compilation of data associated with a given user. For example,an account for a particular user may include data related to the userand/or the user's interests, such as the routes travelled by the user towork home, shopping, or vacation. The user accounts can be stored in thedata storage 116 or memory 114 of the server 102. As an example, one ormore accounts can be sent, e.g., via network 108, to a user device 104or 106 of the user.

In some embodiments, a user account may be created for one or moreusers. For example, an account may be used for a user and his/her spousebecause both of them travel a number or routes together. In someinstances, the account may be a corporate account, where employees,staff, worker personnel, and/or contractors, among other individuals maytravel the same work-related route. Yet further, it should be noted thata user, as described herein, may be a number of individuals or possiblya robot, a robotic system, a computing device, a computing system,and/or another form of technology.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary wearable computing device coupled to auser device, according to an embodiment. As illustrated by diagram 600,the wearable computing device 604 may take the form of a smart watch.Further, the device 604 may include a graphical user interface (GUI). Asshown, the GUI may provide the map of the user's route as describedabove. The smart watch may be coupled to the user device 204 and maycommunicate with the user device to receive the map information and thelocation of the user.

Further, the wearable computing device 604 may have one or more sensorsincluding accelerometers, gyroscopes, compasses, barometers, capacitivesensors, haptic sensors, temperature sensors, ambient light sensors,sound sensors, image sensors, biometric sensors, moisture sensors,electrodes, and/or chemical sampling sensors, among other types ofsensors to receive inputs directly and/or indirectly from the user. Thesensors, possibly located on the inside surfaces of the wrist band 606,may be configured to receive a number of inputs associated with theuser.

FIG. 7 provides an exemplary user device 700, according to someembodiments. The user device 700 may take the form of the user device500 and/or other user devices described above in relation to FIGS. 1,2A, 2B, 2C, and 3. As shown, the user device 700 may take the form of awearable computer. The user device 700 may include a wearable computingdevice with at least one of a head-mountable display (HMD).

In some embodiments, the user device (e.g., the head-mountable device)700 may include a camera and may be used to capture images and the userview of various objects described above may be determined by the imagescaptured by the camera of the user device 700. In another example, thehead-mountable device 700 may detect the view direction of the userwearing the head-mountable device 700 and can send the viewing angle ofthe user to the authentication system 200, 220, and/or 240. For example,the user view may be determined through the lenses 702 and 704. Inparticular, the user view may be determined based on the user's field ofview through the lenses 702 and 704. The user device 700 may alsoinclude a side component 706, a side component 708, and a middlecomponent 710. For example, the computing device 700 may be mountable ona user's head such that the side component 706 rests on one ear of theuser and the side component 708 rests on the other ear of the user.Further, the middle component 710 may rest on the nose of the user. Insome instances, the lenses 702 and 704 may be positioned in front of theuser's eyes. Further, the lenses 702 and 704 may include displays 712and 714, respectively.

In some embodiments, the head-mountable device 700 may be coupleddirectly or through another user device to the authentication systems100, 200, 220, and/or 240. The device 700 may receive a command from anauthentication system 100, 200, 220, or 240 to capture an image.Additionally, the head-mountable device 700 can receive an indication(e.g., a touch and or a gesture) by the user to capture an image.

In some instances, the displays 712 and 714 may be transparent,partially see-through, and/or configured to provide an augmentedreality, for example show a map image such as the map 202 describedabove. Further, the displays 712 and/or 714 may include touch sensingdisplays. As an example, an image of the augmented reality viewed by theuser through the displays 712 and/or 714 of the head-mountable device700 can be used as the image viewed by the user.

FIG. 8A illustrates an exemplary system 800 configured to support a setof trays 804 and 806, according to an embodiment. The system 800 may,for example, include or take the form of the server 102 described abovein relation to FIG. 1. In particular, the system 800 may also bereferred to as the server 800 and/or the server system 800. As such, thesystem 800 may manage numerous authentication requests for the users ofuser devices, such as the user devices 104 and/or 106. The system 800may further support, operate, run, and/or manage the authenticationrequests, possibly in addition to various applications, websites, and/orservices.

As shown, the system 800 may include a chassis 802 that may supporttrays 804 and 806, possibly also referred to as servers and/or servertrays 804 and/or 806. Notably, the chassis 802 may support multipleother servers and/or trays as well. The chassis 802 may include slots808 and 810, among other possible slots, configured to hold or supporttrays 804 and 806, respectively. For example, the tray 804 may beinserted into the slot 808 and the tray 806 may be inserted into theslot 810. Yet, the slots 808 and 810 may be configured to hold the trays804 and 806 interchangeably such that the slot 808 may be configured tohold the tray 806 and the slot 810 may be configured to hold the tray804.

Further, the chassis 802 may be connected to a power supply 812 viaconnections 814 and 816 to provide power to the slots 808 and 810,respectively. The chassis 802 may also be connected to the communicationnetwork 818 via connections 820 and 822 to provide network connectivityto the slots 808 and 810, respectively. As such, trays 804 and 806 maybe inserted into slots 808 and 810, respectively, and power supply 812may supply power to trays 804 and 806 via connections 814 and 816,respectively. Further, trays 804 and 806 may be inserted into the slots810 and 808, respectively, and power supply 812 may supply power totrays 804 and 806 via connections 816 and 814, respectively.

Yet further, trays 804 and 806 may be inserted into slots 808 and 810,respectively, and communication network 818 may provide networkconnectivity to trays 804 and 806 via connections 820 and 822,respectively. In addition, trays 804 and 806 may be inserted into slots810 and 808, respectively, and communication network 818 may providenetwork connectivity to trays 804 and 806 via connections 822 and 820,respectively. The communication network 818 may, for example, take theform of the one or more communication networks 108 of FIG. 1, possiblyincluding one or more of a data network and a cellular network. In someembodiments, the communication network 818 may provide a network port, ahub, a switch, or a router that may be connected to an Ethernet link, anoptical communication link, a telephone link, among other possibilities.

In practice, the tray 804 may be inserted into the slot 808 and the tray806 may be inserted into the slot 810. During operation, the trays 804and 806 may be removed from the slots 808 and 810, respectively.Further, the tray 804 may be inserted into the slot 810 and the tray 806may be inserted into the slot 808, and the system 800 may continueoperating, possibly based on various data buffering mechanisms of thesystem 800. Thus, the capabilities of the trays 804 and 806 mayfacilitate uptime and the availability of the system 800 beyond that oftraditional or conventional servers that may be required to run withoutinterruptions. As such, the server trays 804 and/or 806 facilitatefault-tolerant capabilities of the server system 800 to further extendtimes of operation. In some instances, the server trays 804 and/or 806may include specialized hardware, such as hot-swappable hard drives,that may be replaced in the server trays 804 and/or 806 duringoperation. As such, the server trays 804 and/or 806 may preventinterruptions to further increase uptime.

FIG. 8B illustrates an exemplary tray 804 configured to support one ormore components, according to an embodiment. The tray 804, possibly alsoreferred to as the server tray 804, may take the form of the tray 804described in relation to FIG. 8A. Further, the tray 806 may also takethe form of the tray 804. As shown, the tray 804 may include a tray base830 that may include the bottom surface of the tray 804. The tray base830 may be configured to support multiple components such as the harddrives described above and a main computing board connecting one or morecomponents 832-840. The tray 804 may include a connection 826 that maylink to the connections 814 or 816 to supply power to the tray 804. Thetray 804 may also include a connection 828 that may link to theconnections 820 or 822 to provide network connectivity to the tray 804.The connections 826 and 828 may be positioned on the tray 804 such thatupon inserting the tray 804 into the slot 808, the connections 826 and828 couple directly with the connections 814 and 820, respectively.Further, upon inserting the tray 804 into the slot 810, the connections826 and 828 may couple directly with connections 816 and 822,respectively.

In some embodiments, the tray 804 may include a hardware processorcomponent 832, a non-transitory memory component 834, a non-transitorydata storage component 836, a communication interface component 838,that may, for example, respectively take the form of the processor 112,the memory 114, the data storage 116, and the communication interface118, shown in FIG. 1. Further, the tray 804 may include the data enginecomponent 840 that may manage user data (UD) for numerous users. Assuch, the connections 826 and 828 may be configured to provide power andnetwork connectivity, respectively, to each of the components 832-840.In some embodiments, one or more of the components 832-840 may performoperations described herein, illustrated by the accompanying figures,and/or otherwise contemplated

As shown, the hardware processor component 832 may take the form of amulti-purpose processor, a microprocessor, a special purpose processor,a digital signal processor (DSP). Yet further, the processor component832 may take the form of an application specific integrated circuit(ASIC), a programmable system on chip (PSOC), field-programmable gatearray (FPGA), and/or other types of processing components. Inparticular, the processor component 832 may create, modify, and/or buildUDs for numerous users. For example, the processor component 832 may beconfigured with a Unix-based operating system. Further, the processorcomponent 832 may support the scalability of UDs generated with variousother servers, such as those described above in relation to theauthentication system 150 of FIG. 11. In particular, the processorcomponent 832 may be configured to facilitate the scalability withmultiple such servers of various forms that may, for example, includeserver trays, blades, and/or cartridges similar to the server trays 804and/or 806. In some instances, the processor component 832 may beconfigured with scalable process architectures, including, reducedinstruction set architectures. In some instances, the processorcomponent 832 may be backwards compatible with various legacy systems togenerate UDs such that the processor component 832 may receive, read,and/or execute instruction sets with legacy data formats and/orstructures. As such, the processor component 832 generally hascapabilities beyond that of general-purpose processors.

The database engine component 840 may include one or more securedatabases to generate, build, and/or manage UDs for numerous users. Inparticular, the data base engine component 840 may organize and/orformat the UDs for optimizing searches and/or retrieving data. Invarious circumstances, the database engine component 840 may performsearches based on numerous queries, search multiple databases inparallel, and produce search results simultaneously and/orconsecutively. Thus, the database engine component 840 may relievevarious bottlenecks encountered with conventional servers managingnumerous data entries.

Any two or more of the components 832-840 described above may becombined. For example, two or more of the hardware processor component832, the non-transitory memory component 834, the non-transitory datastorage component 836, the communication component and/or interface 838,and/or the data engine component 840 may be combined. Further, thecombined component may take the form of one or more processors, DSPs,SOCs, FPGAs, and/or ASICs, among other types of processing devicesand/or components described herein. For example, the combined componentmay take the form an SOC that integrates various other components in asingle chip with digital, analog, and/or mixed-signal functions, allincorporated within the same substrate. As such, the SOC may beconfigured to carry out various operations of the components 832-840.

The components 832-840 described above may provide advantages overconventional or general-purpose components. For example, the components832-840 may enable the system 800 to transfer data over the one or morenetworks 818 to numerous other user devices, such as the user devices104 and/or 106 of FIG. 1. In particular, the components 832-840 mayenable the system 800 to create, build, and/or modify UDs for numeroususers locally from a single server tray 804. In some instances,configuring a separate and/or dedicated hardware processor component 832to generate, build, and/or manage UDs may optimize operations beyond thecapabilities of conventional servers and/or general-purpose processors.As such, the average wait time for the user device (e.g., user device104) to display image/data from the UDs may be minimized accordingly.

It can be appreciated that the system 800, the chassis 802, the trays804 and 806, the slots 808 and 810, the power supply 812, thecommunication network 818, and the components 832-840 may be deployed inother ways. The operations performed by components 832-840 may becombined or separated for a given embodiment and may be performed by agreater number or fewer number of components or devices. Further, one ormore components or devices may be operated and/or maintained by the sameor different entities.

Further, the UDs may also include aspects of the location data of theroute corresponding with the users, possibly retrieved from a userdevice of the user. For example, referring back to FIG. 1, various formsof location data of the routes may be retrieved based on the connectionestablished with a user device (e.g., the user device 104) and a server(e.g., server 102). As such, based on data exchanges for establishingthe connection, the server 102 may retrieve and control Wi-Fi beaconingdata, Enhanced Observed Time Difference (EOTD) data, global positioningSystem (GPS) data, Assisted GPS (A-GPS) data, Differential GPS (DGPS)data, Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA) data, Angle of Arrival (AOA)data, triangulation data, among other forms of location data of the userdevice 104 as described herein.

In some embodiments, the server of the authentication system includes anon-transitory memory including instructions and one or more hardwareprocessors. In some examples, referring back to FIG. 1, the server 102of the authentication system 100 can include the non-transitory memory114 that stores the instructions and the one or more hardware processors112. For instances, the one or more hardware processors 112 can becoupled to the non-transitory memory 114 to read the instructions.

In some instances, the authentication system 100, 200, 220, 240 canperform a number of operations. The operations include determining theroute associated with the user based on data retrieved from a userdevice of the user, e.g., user devices 104, 106, or 204. For example,the route can be one of the routes 210, 230, or 250 travelled by theuser in FIG. 2A, 2B, or 2C. Further, the operations include determiningone or more objects associated with the route. For example, the objectscan be one of the landmarks or billboards viewed by the user along theroute 210, 230, or 250. Yet further, the operations include selecting atleast one image of the one or more objects that corresponds to a userview of the one or more objects from the route. For example, the imagecan be one of the images of the landmarks or billboard viewed by theuser along the route 210, 230, or 250. In addition, the operationsinclude determining a request to authenticate the user based at least onthe route associated with the user. For example, referring back to FIG.5, a request of the user can be received by the display screen (e.g.,user interface) 504. Also, the operations include authenticating theuser based at least on a user selection of the image from a plurality ofimages provided to the user. For example, the user is authenticated baseon one of the images 512, 514, 516, 518, 520, and 522 selected by theuser in response to the query question on the display screen 504 of theuser device 500.

As noted, the machine-readable instructions may be executable to causethe machine, such as the user device 500 of FIG. 5, to perform furtheroperations. The operations may include determining a route associatedwith a user based on data retrieved from the user device 104, 106, or204 of the user. For example, referring back to FIG. 2A, 2B, or 2C, theroute can be one of the routes 210, 230, or 250 travelled by the user.Further, the operations include determining one or more objectsassociated with the route. For example, the objects can be one of thelandmarks or billboard viewed by the user along the route 210, 230, or250. Yet further, the operations include generating one or more imagesof the one or more objects on one or more user views of the one or moreobjects from the route. For example, the image can be one of the imagesof the landmarks or billboard viewed by the user along the route 210,230, or 250. Additionally, the operations include determining a requestto authenticate the user based on the one or more user views of the oneor more objects from the route. For example, referring back to FIG. 5 arequest of the user can be received by the display screen 504. Also, theoperations include authenticating the user based at least on one or moreuser selections corresponding to the one or more images from a pluralityof images viewed by the user. For example, the user is authenticatedbase on one or more of the images 512, 514, 516, 518, 520, and 522selected by the user in response to the question on the display screen504 of the user device 500.

In some embodiments, determining the route can include accessing adatabase through a database engine (e.g., database engine 840) where theinformation about the user account can be stored in the database. As anexample, the information about the user includes the information aboutthe route.

FIG. 9 illustrates an exemplary method 900, respectively, according toan embodiment. Notably, one or more steps of the method 900 describedherein may be omitted, performed in a different sequence, and/orcombined with other methods for various types of applicationscontemplated herein. The method 900 can be performed by the user devices104, 106, 204, 300, and 500 shown in FIGS. 1, 2A, 2B, 2C, 3, and 5.

As shown in FIG. 9, at step 902, the method 900 may include receiving arequest to authenticate the user. For example, referring back to FIG. 5,a request to authenticate the user can be received by the display screen504. As another example, a request for authentication can be received bythe user device when the user selects an item/icon on the display screenor more particularly if the user touches the display screen of the userdevice. In some embodiments, the display screen 504 of the user device500 can show a login request 506 asking the user to select one or moreof the images on the display screen. For example and with respect toFIG. 5, the message can ask the user to select one or more of the images512, 514, 516, 518, 520, or 522 on the display screen 504.

At step 904, the method 900 may include determining a route travelled bythe user based at least on data retrieved from the user device. Forexample, referring back to FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C, the routes 210, 230,and 250 can be determined based on data retrieved from the user device204. As noted, the mapping module of the user device 204 can use GPSsignals to determine the location of the user along the routes 210, 230,and 250. In an example, the route can be determined by the user device204 of the user. In another example, the server, e.g., the server 102 ofthe authentication system 100, can retrieve the data from the userdevice, e.g., the user device 104 or 106, and can determine the routebased on the data from the user device.

At step 906, the method 900 may include determining one or more objectsviewable along the route, and selecting at least one image correspondingto the one or more objects. For example, referring back to FIG. 2A, theobject can be a landmark such as the baseball stadium 212 viewable bythe user inside the vehicle 206. Additionally, an image of the object212, e.g., an image of the baseball stadium can be selected. Theselected image, can corresponding to a user view of the objects from theroute. In some embodiments, the user device (e.g., user device 500) canselect one or more images of the objects. The objects can be landmarksor billboards viewed or capable of being viewed by the user along theroute. With respect to FIG. 2A, the object can be a landmark such as thebaseball stadium 212 viewable by the user travelling the route 210inside vehicle 206. The object may be permanent or semi-permanent or maybe only along the route for the day or a time of the day the user isalong the route. With respect to FIG. 2B, the object can be a landmarksuch as the tree 232 viewable by the user biking the route 230. Withrespect to FIG. 2C, the object can be a landmark such as the town hall252 viewable by the user 246 walking the route 250. Alternatively, theobjects viewed by the user along a route can be one or more billboardsshown in FIGS. 4A and 4B and the viewed images can be the image of orcontent displayed on the billboards. Additionally, the objects can beone or more billboards and one or more landmarks and the viewed imagescan be a combination of images of the billboards and landmarks. Thus,the user devices can determine one or more objects, which can besequential.

At step 908, the method 900 may include displaying the at least oneimage and at least one other image on the user device in response to therequest to authenticate. For example and with respect to FIG. 5, theimages 512, 514, 516, 518, 520, and 522 can be displayed on the displayscreen 504 of the user device 500 in response to the authenticationrequest. As shown with respect to FIGS. 4A and 4B, the images 512 and514 can be images of the objects, e.g., billboards 402 and 404, that mayhave been viewed by the user along the route. The plurality of otherimages 516, 518, 520, and 522 can be retrieved by the user devicethrough a network, e.g., the network 108 of the authentication system100. Additionally, a login request 506 may be shown on the user screen504 of the user device 500, asking the user to select one or more of theimages on the display screen. In an example, the login request 506 canask the user to select an image viewed along the route. In anotherexample, the login request 506 may ask the user to select a sequence ofimages, in order, viewed along the route.

At step 910, the method 900 may include receiving a selection of the atleast one image, and authenticating the user based, at least in part, onthe selection. The selection can be received through a display screen,e.g., the display screen 504 of the user device 500. The display screen504 of the user device 500 can show a login request 506 asking the userto select one or more of the images on the display screen. For example,the message can ask the user to select one or more of the images 512,514, 516, 518, 520, or 522 as the images viewed by the user along theroute. The user may select one or more of the images 512, 514, 516, 518,520, or 522 and the user device may receive the user selections. As anexample, after the user correctly selects the image 512 on the displayscreen 504 as the image of the object, e.g., the billboard 402, vieweden-route, the authentication system may identify the user and may grantuser's request. For example, after user authentication, theauthentication system may grant the user to access a user's account.Alternatively, after authentication, the user device may grant the useraccess to the user device. The type of authentication described hereinmay be a first factor authentication, such that no other authenticationis needed to grant access, or the authentication may be a second orsubsequent authentication, such that it is used in combination with oneor more other authentication methods, such as a biometric login, entryof a password or PIN, or the like. Use of authentications as describedherein may depend on the level of security desired for authentication,such as access to more confidential data, a request for a higher valuepurchase, etc. and may require additional authentication (such as abiometric or password/PIN), while lower security access may only requirethe object-based authentication described herein.

FIG. 10 illustrates an exemplary method 1000, respectively, according toan embodiment. Notably, one or more steps of the method 1000 describedherein may be omitted, performed in a different sequence, and/orcombined with other methods for various types of applicationscontemplated herein. The method 1000 can be performed by theauthentication system of FIGS. 1, 2A, 2B, and 2C. In some embodiments,the operations performed by the authentication systems 100, 150, 200,220, or 240, can be performed by one or more modules executing by one ormore processors, e.g., the processors 112 of the server 102 of theauthentication system 100. Additionally, a portion or all of theoperations can be executed by one or more processors of the userdevices, e.g., by the processors 134 or 144 of the user devices 104 or106.

As shown in FIG. 10, at step 1002, the method 1000 may include receivinga request, from a user device of a user, to authenticate the user. Theauthentication systems 100, 150, 200, 220, or 240, can receive a requestto authenticate the user from the user device of the user. The userdevice can take the form of the user devices 104, 106, 204, 300, and500. For example, the display screen 504 of an example user device 500shows receiving a request for user authentication. In an example, therequest from the user device can be sent, e.g., through the network 108to sever 102 of the authentication system 100.

At step 1004, the method 1000 may include determining a route travelledby the user, based at least on data retrieved from the user device ofthe user. The route travelled by the user can be determined in responseto receiving the request from a user device of a user. For example,referring back to FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C, the routes 210, 230, and 250 canbe determined based on data retrieved from the user device 204. Asnoted, the mapping module of the user device 204 can use GPS signals todetermine the location of the vehicle 206 along the routes 210, 230, and250. In an example, a server, e.g., the server 102 of the authenticationsystem 100, can retrieve the data from a user device, e.g., the userdevice 204, and can determine the route. In another example, the routecan be determined by the user device of the user.

At step 1006, the method 1000 may include determining one or moreobjects viewable along the route and selecting at least one imagecorresponding to the one or more objects. For example, the objectviewable along the route 210 can be a landmark such as the baseballstadium 212 viewable by the user inside vehicle 206. Additionally, animage of the object 212, e.g., an image of the baseball stadium can beselected to be used for authentication. In another example, the image ofthe object 212, e.g., the image of the baseball stadium 212 can bedetermined according to the user view of the baseball stadium 212 andfor instance from the angle the user was viewing the baseball stadium212 at location 216 of the route 210. In an example, a server, e.g., theserver 102 of the authentication system 100 can determine the objectsviewable along the route as well as can select the at least one image ofthe objects. In another example, the objects viewable along the route aswell as the selection of the at least one image of the objects can bedetermined by the user device of the user.

At step 1008, the method 1000 may include communicating the at least oneimage and at least one other image to the user device causing the atleast one image and the at least one other image to be displayed on theuser device. Communicating the at least one image and at least one otherimage to the user device and/or the display of the images on the displayscreen of the user device can be in response to the request toauthenticate. A server, e.g., the server 102 of the authenticationsystem 100 can communicate and can send the images of the viewed objectsas well as the other images through the network 108 to a user devicethat can take the form of the user devices 104, 106, 204, 300, and 500.In response to the authentication request, for example, the displayscreen 504 of the user device 500 can display the images 512 and 514 ofthe billboards 402 and 404 viewed by the user en-route. Additionally,the display screen 504 of the user device 500 can display the otherimages 516, 518, 520, and 522.

At step 1010, the method 1000 may include receiving, a selection of theat least one image, and authenticating the user based, at least in part,on the selection. The authentication system, e.g., the authenticationsystem 100, 200, 220, or 240 can receive the selection of the userthrough a display screen of the user device e.g., user device 104, 106,204, 300, or 500. The display screen 504 of the user device 500 can showa login request 506 asking the user to select one or more of the imageson the display screen. For example, the message can ask the user toselect one or more of the images 512, 514, 516, 518, 520, or 522 as theimage viewed by the user along the route. As an example, after the usercorrectly selects one of the images on the display screen 504, theauthentication system may identify the user and may grant user'srequest. For example, after user authentication, the authenticationsystem may grant the user to access a user's account. For example, theuser may select the image 512 as an image viewed en-route to work todayand the authentication system (e.g., authentication system 200) maygrant user's request.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram of another exemplary authentication system,according to an embodiment. As shown, the system 150, possibly referredto as the data infrastructure 150, may be configured to transfer thedata packets 122 and/or 124 as described above in relation toauthentication system 100 in FIG. 1. For example, the system 150includes the server 102 of the authentication system 100, shown as auser data (UD) server 102 and can store the UD including the informationof the routes and objects associated with the routes in the server 102.Further, the system 150 includes the user devices 104 and 106, and alsothe one or more networks 108 of the authentication system 100. Asillustrated, the data infrastructure 150 may include one or morecommunication servers 152, one or more application servers 160, and/orone or more database servers 166.

In some embodiments, the one or more communication servers 152 mayinclude a web server 154, an application programming interface (API)server 156, and/or a message server 158. The web server 154 may beconfigured to communicate with the user devices 104 and/or 106 over theone or more networks 108. The web server 154 may host numerous webbrowsers, web sites, web-based applications, software applications,virtual machines, and/or other possibilities. The API server 156 may beconfigured to communicate with various applications or mobile apps ofthe user devices 104 and/or 106, including service provider applicationsconfigured to communicate with API-based communications and/or protocolsover the one or more networks 108. The message server 158 may beconfigured to communicate with the user devices 104 and/or 106 over theone or more networks 108 with various transmissions, communicationmediums, and/or related applications such as e-mail, local area network(LAN) messaging, and/or short message service (SMS), among various otherpossibilities. Notably, any two or more of the servers 154, 156, and/or158 may be combined and the combined server may be configured to performone or more operations of the servers 154, 156, and/or 158 as describedand/or contemplated herein.

In some embodiments, the one or more application servers 160 may includethe user data (UD) server 102, the user controls server 162, and/or theuser account server 164. The UD server 102 may maintain, manage, and/orsupport numerous UDs, each UD including the data about the routestravelled by a user and the objects as well as the images of the objectcorresponding with the routes travelled by the user. The user controlsserver 162 may maintain, manage, and/or support various user controls,configurations, and/or settings associated with the respective UDs forthe one or more users. Additionally, the user account server 164 maymaintain, manage, and/or support numerous user accounts for the one ormore users. In addition to the routes, objects corresponding to theroutes and images of the objects, the accounts can optionally includepersonal information such as address and email of the users.

In some embodiments, the one or more database servers 166 may includethe database server 170, the user data database 168, and/or the useraccount database 172. The database server 170 may communicate with theUD server 102 to facilitate the storage of data, data types, and/or dataentries in the UD database 168. The database server 170 may alsocommunicate with the user account server 164 to facilitate the storageof user account data in the user account database 172. In someembodiments, the data stored with the UD database 168 may correspond tothe data stored with the user account database 172. As such, thedatabase server 170 may include one or more search indexes with varyingcomplexities to minimize replicated data entries stored in the UDdatabase 168 and the user account database 172.

In practice, for example, the user data of a user operating the userdevice 104 may send via one or more networks 108 to the UD server tocreate UD account for the user. Referring back to FIG. 1, the requestmay be embedded with the data/data packet 122. As such, the request maybe transmitted to the one or more communications servers 152 to requesta connection with the UD server 102. For example, the web server 154,possibly referred to as a domain name server (DNS) in this scenario, maysearch and identify one or more internet protocol (IP) addresses of theUD server 102, possibly taking the form of 192.168.102.100. As such, aconnection with the user device 104 and the UD server 102 may beestablished to create the UD account. Notably, the user device 104 mayestablish such connections with the UD server 102 with or without userinputs, possibly to generate, build, and/or modify the user data inreal-time, possibly unbeknownst to the user of the user device 104.

In some embodiments, the system 150 may be referred to as a user datasystem (UD) 150. In particular, the UD system 150 may include thenon-transitory memory 114 for storing instructions. The UD system 150may also include the one or more of hardware processors 112 coupled tothe non-transitory memory 114 and configured to read the instructions tocause the system 150 to perform operations. The UD system 150 may createone or more UDs for a user with or without the user's inputs, where eachUD identifies routes associated with a user, objects associated with theroutes and image of the routed viewed by the user. The system 150 mayrecognize various forms of data natively stored in the user device 104,possibly based on the connection protocols between the user device 104and the UD server 102 described above.

It can be appreciated that the server 102 and the user devices 104and/or 106 in FIGS. 1 and 11 may be deployed in various other ways. Forexample, the operations performed by the server 102 and/or the userdevices 104 and 106 may be performed by a greater or a fewer number ofdevices. Further, the operations performed by two or more devices, suchas the servers 102, 162, and/or 164, may be combined and performed by asingle device, such as the server 102. Yet further, the operationsperformed by a single device, such as the server 102, may be separatedor distributed among the server 102, the user controls server 162, theuser account server 164, and/or the database server 170, among otherpossible devices. In addition, the user devices 104 and/or 106 may beoperated and/or maintained by different users such that each user device104 and/or 106 may be associated with at least one UD.

In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 11, the system 150 may activatean application, such as a mobile app on the user device 104 toauthenticate the user. For example, the server 102 may establish aconnection with the user device 104 over the one or more networks 108,possibly based on one or more calls exchanged with the API server 156.As such, the mobile app may be activated to display the display screen(GUI) 504 shown in FIG. 5. Further, the app may allow the user to accessthe user device 500 or access an account on the mobile app based onuser's input on the user screen 504.

In some instances, the one or more hardware processors of the servers(e.g., processors 112 of FIG. 1 and/or processor 832 of FIG. 8B) maydetermine the location of the user device 102 or 104 by retrieving datafrom the user device 104 or 106. For example, the location may bedetermined by cellular protocol data, including GSM, CDMA, UMTS, EV-DO,WiMAX, or LTE data, and/or base station data, among other forms of datapossibly available. In addition, the location may be further determinedby sensor data, movement data (e.g., acceleration and/or velocity data)of the user device, temperature data, radio-frequency identifier (RFID)data, near-field communications (NFC) data, among other possible formsof data available.

The present disclosure, the accompanying figures, and the claims are notintended to limit the present disclosure to the example embodimentsdisclosed. As such, it is contemplated that various alternateembodiments and/or modifications to the embodiment disclosed, whetherexplicitly described or implied herein, are possible in light of thedisclosure and/or the figures. Having thus described embodiments of thepresent disclosure, persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognizethat changes may be made to the embodiments disclosed without departingfrom the scope of the present disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: one or morecomputer-readable memories storing program instructions; and one or moreprocessors configured to execute the program instructions to cause thesystem to perform operations comprising: in response to detecting areception of an authentication credential from a user device,determining a travel path corresponding to a user of the user device;determining one or more images corresponding to the determined travelpath; transmitting a plurality of images to the user device, wherein theplurality of images includes the determined one or more images;receiving, from the user device, information indicating a selection ofthe one or more images from the plurality of images; and in response toreceiving the information indicating the selection of the one or moreimages, authenticating the user.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein thedetermined one or more images correspond to one or more objects that areviewable from the determined travel path.
 3. The system of claim 1,wherein the authentication credential includes login informationcorresponding to the user.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein thedetermining the travel path corresponding to the user includes receivingcurrent location information from the user device.
 5. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the determining the travel path corresponding to theuser includes receiving past location information from the user device.6. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one image of the plurality ofimages does not correspond to the determined travel path.
 7. The systemof claim 1, wherein the determining the one or more images correspondingto the determined travel path includes: determining an objectcorresponding to the determined travel path; determining a first imagefrom a plurality of images displayed by the object that corresponds to atime period when the object is viewable by the user; and wherein thedetermined one or more images includes the first image.
 8. A methodcomprising: in response to detecting an authentication requestcorresponding to a user device, determining a travel path correspondingto a user of the user device; determining a first plurality of imagescorresponding to the determined travel path, wherein the first pluralityof images correspond to one or more objects that are viewable from thedetermined travel path; determining a first image from the firstplurality of images corresponding to the determined travel path;transmitting the first image and a second plurality of images to theuser device, wherein the second plurality of images is different fromthe first plurality of images; receiving, from the user device,information indicating a selection of the first image; and in responseto receiving the information indicating the selection of the firstimage, authenticating the user.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein thedetermining the first image from the first plurality of images is basedon determining that a likelihood that the first image will be viewed bythe user is higher than a likelihood that at least one of the firstplurality of images will be viewed by the user.
 10. The method of claim8, wherein the transmitting the first image and the second plurality ofimages to the user device causes the first image and the secondplurality of images to be displayed on a user interface of the userdevice.
 11. The method of claim 8, wherein the detecting theauthentication request corresponding to the user device includesreceiving an authentication credential from the user device.
 12. Themethod of claim 11, wherein the authentication credential includes logininformation corresponding to the user.
 13. The method of claim 8,wherein the second plurality of images does not correspond to thedetermined travel path.
 14. The method of claim 8, wherein thedetermining the travel path corresponding to the user includes receivingcurrent location information from the user device.
 15. A non-transitorycomputer readable medium storing program instructions, the programinstructions when executed cause a machine to perform operationscomprising: in response to detecting a reception of an authenticationcredential from a user device, determining a travel path correspondingto a user of the user device; determining one or more imagescorresponding to the determined travel path; transmitting a plurality ofimages to the user device, wherein the plurality of images includes thedetermined one or more images; receiving, from the user device,information indicating a selection of the one or more images from theplurality of images; and in response to receiving the informationindicating the selection of the one or more images, authenticating theuser.
 16. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15,wherein the determined one or more images correspond to one or moreobjects that are viewable from the determined travel path.
 17. Thenon-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein theauthentication credential includes login information corresponding tothe user.
 18. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15,wherein the determining the travel path corresponding to the userincludes receiving current location information from the user device.19. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 18, wherein thedetermining the travel path corresponding to the user further includesreceiving past location information from the user device.
 20. Thenon-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein at leastone image of the plurality of images does not correspond to thedetermined travel path.